Diary of a Giants Fan: Giants-Buccaneers Preview

After a week one loss to the Cowboys, the Giants try to rally at home to the Tampa Bay Bucs.

Alright, Giant fans. So that wasn't exactly what we were hoping for week one. In fact, let's be honest: Week one sucked - hard. Between the secondary's evisceration at the hands of the apparently dynamic yet thoroughly unknown Kevin Ogeltree, the running game's inability to - well - run, and Victor Cruz's drops, it's a wonder the score wasn't worse. If I'd been a lesser man - without the benefit of common sense or the understanding that a game is a game - something would have ended up broken in my house.

As it is, I handled the disappointment in a much healthier way - burying it deep inside amidst realizations that the Cowboys are better than anyone thought, and - yes - by the viewing of last year's Sports Illustrated "The New York Giants Just Won the Super Bowl Video." And what struck me while reflecting on last year's enigmatic campaign wasn't the stark difference between 2011 and 2012, but their similarities. It's the same team, with almost entirely the same personnel, and in a similar situation. To put it plainly? We've been here before Giant fans, so buck the **** up.

Sunday, the G-Men will host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who followed up a dismal 2011 campaign with a win over the Panthers in week one. Josh Freeman leads the offense, backed by the offseason addition of free agent signee Vincent Jackson and rookie running back Doug Martin. Their defense will feature a familiar name, though perhaps because it's Ronde and not Tiki Barber, Giant fans will stop short of booing voraciously.

And while the more...hydrated...Giant fans may voice their displeasure after mistaking the Tampa Bay corner for the joker whom retired in anger and took his frustrations out behind a desk at NBC, I think theirs may be the only boos of the day. Indeed, though I have learned to approach every Giant game with some skepticism, I can't help but feel good heading into Sunday. Yes, Vincent Jackson's presence in the passing game gives me some pause, but really, any combination of decent quarterback and decent wide receiver would do the same against a Giant secondary that was abysmal last year and didn't show any signs of improvement in week one - and either way, I don't see it mattering too much.

Annoying as it may be, sometimes this Giant team just needs a wakeup call - and I think they got it last week. A subpar performance by the best defensive line in football will be rectified; restitution will be made by a receiving corps who let momentum slip through their fingers more than once. Quite simply, the Giants are the better team, and I don't think our boys lose at home to fall to 0-2. Eli leads the offense, Tuck leads the defense, Giants win 27-17.

Follow me on Twitter for live tweets throughout the game, and check back for a recap as soon as it goes final - and as always, Go Giants!